Osthaven
Osthaven is the desert country between the IZ territory and Dozei, the only barrier between the IZ and the fertile lands of Meht and Dozei. While it used to be more grassland than desert, scorched earth tactics have destroyed most of west Osthaven. Eastern Osthaven fares a little better, but it is still a gigantic desert. Not a lot of people live in Osthaven, but a few choose to live there out of tradition and some are there to look for treasure in the ruins of Middle and East Osthaven. Politics and Government The primary government of Osthaven collapsed long ago, leading to a Wild West like environment where the law is in the hands of those with power. While Dozei claims to have annexed Osthaven, and that annexation is acknowledged by the few citizens of Osthaven, Dozei never really got to re-establishing government in this desert land. Ergo, most towns have a mayor or leader, and that's pretty much it for organized government. There really aren't any politics to speak of, because there isn't any organized government. The IZ need to find something to possess soon after being spawned, or they die from exposure of their pure form to the sun. Osthaven thus presents a very big obstacle for them, because the IZ can only possess things with aether flowing through them. Since Dozei implemented a scorched earth policy in Osthaven in the Third War, all things that the IZ could have possessed in western Osthaven have been destroyed and rendered useless to the IZ. While some do make it across the desert, it never evolves into a large threat due to the isolated nature of most towns in Osthaven. Worst comes to worst, a town gets wiped off the map. It's certainly not the biggest of Dozei's concerns. Locations Haeste Colosseum Haeste Colosseum is a very large arena located on the edge of eastern Osthaven, and is a national landmark created somewhere around a hundred years before the Second War. It plays host to gladiator battles year round, and is a very large source of revenue for Dozei and local gambling rings. It also happens to be the location for most duels in the Certification Exams, making it a heavily trafficked around around April. Creatures Ahabin One cannot talk about Osthaven without mentioning the Ahabin. Gigantic worms that eat through sand for the water and minerals they need to survive, entire towns can vanish in a whirl of activity near a hive of Ahabin. They can live for hundreds of years, with elders being nearly a thousand years old and over half a mile long. Very rarely are young Ahabin seen outside of their hives, but adults and elders are often seen gathering food for the younglings. Ahabin are seen in ancient carvings found in Osthaven caves, suggesting that the Preseans were the ones who originally colonized Osthaven. However, any trace of that bloodline has been wiped out with the decline of the race in recent years. Wyrjackals Wyrjackals are a unique species of desert-dwelling creatures that live near the plateaus of middle Osthaven. They hunt mostly in the day, to avoid the freezing cold of the night. They can produce fire from the nape of their neck, and they use it to signal each other from long distances. However, this signalling also happens to make a sound quite similar to a farting noise, which unseasoned travellers find hilarious. Veterans find a chorus of farts terrifying however, as it signals that something is wrong in the local area. Striders Strider are long-legged beasts that live in western Osthaven in herds of 10-20, spending their lives running between oasises. While most people today use horses, ancient Osthaveners apparently used striders as steeds before western Osthaven was wiped off the map. They still retain characteristics of a domesticated race, and like to spend time near humans when possible, going so far as to follow caravans across the desert. Culture The Third War was mostly based around here. Shit happened. Because of that, there's lots of wreckage and stuff that looters take advantage of. But it's also a very old place, and back in the time of the first and second Emperor, it was as large as Meht was 60 years ago, or even larger. History First there were Preseans. But also there were dudes living here. They interbred. Lots of people. Then IZ, people blew up.